Aloha everyone,

I am Crystal. I want to take a moment to introduce myself and my partner, Scott. We are Gluten Free Hawaii.

Prior to debilitating illness, I was a preschool teacher. In high school in college I studied and worked as a journalist. I have worked with children for over 20 years. I have extensive experience with children from as young as two weeks old up to 6th grade. From babysitting to nannying to the preschool classroom, and then my own in-home early childhood education and care program, working with children has been a passion since I was a small child volunteering in our church nursery. When I made the tough decision to close my toddler program, it was a hard to accept my body was failing to keep up with a lifelong dream I was fulfilling .

In high school and college, I worked at the schools’ newspapers. In college I was the editor-in-chief of our academic journal, Hohonu, and the assistant editor-in-chief of the newspaper, Ke Kalahea. I have always loved writing in photography. I saw a post online during the 2016 hurricane season that encouraged readers to send in weather photos to a local digital media outlet as hurricane Madeline approached Hawaii island. Scott and I decided to go out and see what the surf was like and how high the rivers were. That began a transformational experience in my life. I contributed, sometimes even donated my writing and photographs. I love that even with my limitations I have found ways to fulfill lifelong dreams.

Scott and I have been together since September 2010. I would go for the 1st CT and round of blood work on October 27th, 2010 and medically withdrawing from University of Hawaii at Hilo just three classes shy of completing the requirements for the elementary teacher education program.

I have a Bachelor of Arts in English with a writing emphasis and a certificate for Teaching English as a Second/Other language from UH Hilo. I also have a certificate in graphic design from the Community College of Denver.

Scott was raised on Hawaii Island, moving here at 6 months old. It’s easy to assume going gluten free was never something that even crossed his mind, but when it became the only thing we could do to treat my Celiac Disease head on, Scott never hesitated and immediately dove into a gluten-free lifestyle. He would quickly declare kitchen and home a dedicated gluten free space. Without Scott, my journey to gluten-free life would have been completely different. Not only did Scott support me 100% 24-7, he himself went gluten-free, subsequently losing 50 pounds. I will wait and allow him to share more directly with you, but Scott is my rock. He has done more for me than any partner should have to. No one signs up for the for chronic illness. It is not easy to be with someone who has chronic pain and illness.

Scott’s experience in the restaurant industry and his passion for food has made adapting and creating gluten and dairy free recipes is not only fun, but exciting to share.

I have started this blog to share our experiences, lessons learned, tips, favorite recipes, restaurant reviews, gardening and just what life with Celiac Disease and multiple autoimmune and chronic pain conditions can look like. But most of all to spread awareness.

We hope you find us helpful and uplifting.

Welcome to our space the place where we share our trials and tribulations, our hopes and our dreams and our fears, failures and regrets open heartedly with the world.